My Dearest Nemesis Review: Predictable Yet Too Cute to Resist - K-waves and Beyond
Director: Lee Soo-hyun
Date Created: 2025-03-26 00:49
3.5
My Dearest Nemesis Review: Directed by Lee Soo-hyun, the drama 그놈은 흑염룡 features Moon Ga-young as Baek Su-jeong and Choi Hyun-wook as the male lead Ban Joo-yeon, with Im Se-mi and Kwak Si-yang as the second leads. The plot follows two people who started off as online gamers and ended up being each other’s first love. But when they met in real life, Su-jeong learned that Joo-yeon had been dishonest about his age — he was younger than her. Their love story never got off the ground. Sixteen years later, they come face to face as coworkers, and old feelings resurface along with misunderstandings — and plenty of drama.
My Dearest Nemesis Review
First things first, the plot is cliché. If you have watched sufficient K-drama, you know how that’s gonna go. Childhood connection? Check. Workplace romance? Check. Misunderstandings that last for episode after episode? Also, check. Even though it follows a well-trod path, I still ended up enjoying it.
Why? Because it’s cute. Sometimes, a straightforward, fun drama is just what you want. The leads have good chemistry, the romance is nice, and there are enough funny moments to keep it light. This is probably not for you if you’re looking for something deep or unusual. But if you’re in the market for a feel-good romance, it’s well worth a watch.
One of the best things about My Dearest Nemesis is Moon Ga-young. She stars as Su-jeong, an industrious woman uninterested in wasting time on romance. I like that she wasn’t a stereotypical rom-com heroine who got flustered by everything. She has her own agenda and isn’t influenced by emotions.
There is a scene in which she collapses in front of her dad, and it really, really got to me. Until then, she’d kept everything together, but then you see how much she’d been suppressing, and Moon Ga-young’s performance at that moment was really so natural that I almost cried.
Choi Hyun-wook is still a rising star, but I have to say the way he has been selecting his projects is commendable, and he did a great job as Joo-yeon. He’s with a playful, slightly mischievous character, but underneath that, he’s someone who’s always felt unloved. I liked that he wasn’t your stereotypical rich, cold CEO. Instead, he was a man who wanted affection and attempted to mask his loneliness with a shining grin.
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His character did annoy me at times—particularly when he behaved too infantile or held back communication but he was leading a double life, so his actions were pretty damned justifiable. But on the whole, he juggled jokes and poignancy effectively. Their chemistry, as well as his with Moon Ga-young, was also very good, in my opinion, and every scene they shared was enjoyable to watch.
Before the drama aired, there was some chatter over the age difference between the two leads. Choi Hyun-wook is five years younger than Moon Ga-young in real life, and some considered her to be “too old” for him. I thought this was absurd, to be honest. To start with, there is actually a 5 year age gap between their roles in the drama too, so it does make sense considering this was the arrangement. Second of all, Moon Ga-young is so pretty, and their chemistry was so good. So, why does it matter? Once you start watching, you won’t think about the age difference at all. They look cute together, and that’s all that matters.
Although the romance between Su-jeong and Joo-yeon is fun and playful, the second lead couple, played by Im Se-mi and Kwak Si-yang, is much more mature and serious about their love story. I really liked their scenes a lot because they felt different from the main couple. Their relationship had very real-world issues, and I sometimes found myself more interested in their story than the central one. I did feel a little cheated that the second lead couple didn’t get more airtime, though.
Now, what I did not like is that there were times when a simple conversation could have fixed everything, but instead, they prolonged the misunderstandings for nothing. It’s a thing in K-dramas, though, and it irked me anyway. I love an entertaining rom-com, but at times, the slapstick comedy was a little much.” Fortunately, the drama countered with enough sweet moments that it wasn’t too bad.
The ending also felt somewhat rushed. I won’t spoil anything, but I’ll say that I wish the series had given more screen time to character development in the final episodes. The ending was too fast, and I wanted more of the moments between the leads.
Summing Up
My Dearest Nemesis kdrama is a fun, breezy watch with sweet moments sprinkled throughout. The chemistry between the lead actors is terrific, the supporting cast is fun to watch, and it’s that sort of drama that makes you feel good — even when you can guess exactly what’s coming next.
My Dearest Nemesis series is now streaming on Viki.
